TUESDAY MORNING QUARTERBACK: Crazy play helps Tiverton to first football win

Monday

Sep 25, 2017 at 10:04 PMSep 26, 2017 at 10:09 AM

Greg Sullivan Herald News Staff Reporter

Last week’s scores

Wellesley 21, Durfee 7

Tiverton 19, Hope 12

Somerset Berkley 20, Dighton-Rehoboth 6

Case 26, Bourne 6

Southeastern 38, Bishop Connolly 0

Sandwich 13, Bishop Stang 7

Atlantis Charter forfeited at Martha’s Vineyard

Diman was idle

Records

Somerset Berkley 3-0

Case 3-0

Diman 1-1

Tiverton 1-2

Durfee 0-3

Bishop Stang 0-3

Bishop Connolly 0-3

Atlantis Charter 0-3

Bob Murray couldn’t text this info to us. He had to call and explain it.

His Tiverton High football team on Saturday broke into the win column by defeating Hope High School 19-12 in Providence. With 27 seconds left in the first half, Hope kicked off after having taken a 6-0 lead.

Tiverton took over at its own 20 and, with several huge assists from Hope, drove for a touchdown and a 7-6 lead, Garrett Nolan catching a 15-yard touchdown pass from Matthew Gacioch with no time on the clock.

On the first play, Tiverton sent four receivers straight up the field and Gacioch launched a pass down the Hope sideline. The ball was intercepted by a Hope player – who came off the sidelines. “I heard the refs yelling, ‘What the hell was that,’” Murray said. “I’ve never seen that before. It was hilarious.”

Sophomore Adam Amaral then turned a Gacioch pass into a big gainer. Hope committed a facemask penalty on the tackle, and then got hit with another personal foul flag, leaving Tiverton at the 15 with no time on the clock. Gacioch rolled right and found Nolan at the back of the end zone. Matt Potvin kicked the extra point.

Hope went up on a big pass play early second half. Tiverton went up 13-12 when David Williams scored from a yard out after a fourth-and-6 pass from Gacioch to Logan Beattie put the ball at the 1. With 3:30 left in the game, Williams, a force on both sides of the ball, turned a pass to the flat into a 13-yard TD and the 19-12 lead.

Powering the ball, Hope marched to the brink of a touchdown before Tiverton’s defense stopped a quarterback sneak on fourth-and-a-goal from the 1. “There was a hole, and then the wall closed it up,” Murray said.

Tiverton took over at its own half-yard line with 30 seconds to go. With Williams providing a push, Gacioch sneaked for a couple of yards, giving Tiverton room to take a couple of knees.

*** Just what the rest of the South Coast Conference Small wanted to hear. Case’s has added another big-play threat.

After missing the first two games of the season due to injury, senior Jeremy Thiboutot made his 2017 debut by rushing for 136 yards and a touchdown as Case defeated Bourne 30-6 in a baby monsoon on Friday night in Bourne.

“He’s been a big part of this team the last three years. It’s nice to have him back,” coach Anthony Palladino said. “He eats, sleeps and breathes Case football. Anytime he’s on the field, he’s going to be successful.”

Three games into the season and Case has three backs – quarterback Devin Proulx, Chris Costa, Thiboutot – who have rushed for 100 yards or more in at least one game.

“There’s no such thing as having too many weapons,” Palladino said. “We try to be multiple on offense. Bourne did a great job taking away Devin Proulx on the edge.”

Thiboutot is no fresh face in Cardinal land. He’s been with the varsity since his freshman year.

Case fullback Ty Couto (injury) missed the Bourne game.

*** You’ve probably heard that mistakes cost Durfee dearly in its 21-7 home loss to Wellesley on Saturday night. Here’s the rundown:

*** Case on Friday thoroughly enjoyed its first pass completion of the season. Proulx connected with running back/former wide receiver Chris Costa in the end zone on a fourth-and-18 for the game’s first score at Bourne. Case has not needed to pass often. In their Week 2 win over Diman, the Cards threw zero passes.

*** Atlantis Charter (0-2) forfeited to Martha’s Vineyard last Friday for lack of healthy players. The Tritons are scheduled to play at Bishop Stang this Friday, and coach Jerome Williams fully expects to have his crew in Dartmouth.

"Yes, we are moving forward with our season,” he wrote in a text. “Injuries of some of our best players have affected us. We have a young ‘scrappy’ team, that I am proud to coach.”

*** Perhaps as impressive as Somerset Berkley’s 20-6 edge over Dighton-Rehoboth in the first half last Friday was the way the Raiders (3-0) protected that lead in the second half. Defensive stops, a clock-eating running game, and a late interception by Jake Rebello. D-R in the second half didn’t get a good luck at the SB end zone.